ni

pronoun. I

nī

noun. woman

ninkwerita-

verb. ninkwerita-

nindi

root. fragile, thin

A root in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “fragile, thin” with derivatives like ᴹQ. ninde/N. ninn “slender” (Ety/NIN-DI), replacing deleted ᴹ√NIN-DA “blue” (EtyAC/NIN-DI) which was probably a later manifestation of ᴱ√NINI “✱blue” from the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s (QL/66). ᴱ√NINI had derivatives in both Qenya and Gnomish in the 1910s, but there are no signs of nin- as “blue” in Tolkien’s later writing.

ninkwi

adjective. white, pale

nis

root. woman

ni-ndakubākyē, uklaina ndere

I will slay thee, wicked man

ni mati-te mati-the

I eat it and that

ninkwitā-

verb. to make white (or pale), whiten

nib

root. face, front

nid

root. lean against

nid

root. hurt, injure

nidwō

noun. bolster, cushion

nik(w)

root. *snow; white

ninkwitil(di) tára

place name. High White Horn

nī̆s

noun. woman

ni mati-te

I eat it (him/her)

ni matite yu the

I eat it and that

nī/ini

root. female

neiniel-

adjective. tearful

lugni

adjective. blue

doʒ

root. night

A root in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “night” that (along with ᴹ√DOM) was the basis for the ᴹQ. lóme/N. dû “night” (Ety/DOƷ). It replaced some rejected variants ᴹ√LOƷ and ᴹ√DAW (EtyAC/LOƷ). Many of the derivatives of ᴹ√DOƷ were later assigned to other roots: N. dûr “dark” became S. dûr “dark” < √NDU “under, down” in notes from the late 1950s or early 1960s (PE17/152) and ᴹQ. lóna “dark” became Q. lúna (PE17/22). There are no signs of ᴹQ. ló “night” and N. daw “night-time, gloom” in Tolkien’s later writing. Future derivations of Q. lómë/S. dû only mention the root √DOM (PE17/152; PE22/153) and thus ᴹ√DOƷ may have been abandoned.

In a message to the Elfling mailing list from July 2012 (Elfling/362.96), David Salo suggested there might be a later root ✱√DU serving as the basis for Q. lúna “dark” and Q. lúmë “darkness”, though the latter might instead be from √LUM. Such a root ✱√DU is not attested in Tolkien writings, but if it existed, it could be a later iteration of ᴹ√DOƷ. Another possible example of the root ✱√DU is primitive ✶durnŭ “dark of hue”.

dōmi

noun. night, twilight, gloom

dōmilindē

noun. nightingale

neter

root. nine

phuine

noun. night, deep shadow, nightshade

tindōmiselde

feminine name. Nightingale, (lit.) Daughter of Twilight

phin

root. nimbleness, skill

mǭri

noun. blackness, dark, night

ney

root. tear

Tolkien used similar forms throughout his life for Elvish words connected to “tears”, the most enduring being Q. Nienna “Lady of Pity and Mourning” and S. nirnaeth as in Nirnaeth Arnoediad “[Battle of] Tears Unnumbered”. The first manifestation of this root was as ᴱ√NYE(NE) “bleat” and ᴱ√NYEHE “weep” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, though Tolkien considered moving all the derivatives of ᴱ√NYE(NE) to ᴱ√NYEHE (QL/68). Nonetheless it seems the distinction survived in the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon which had both nı̯e and nı̯eχe as primitive forms (GL/59-60). Early derivatives include ᴱQ. nyé “bleat” and ᴱQ. nyéni “she-goat” along with ᴱQ. nyére/G. nîr “grief” and ᴱQ. nie/G. nîn “tear”, the last of these appearing in G. Nínin-Udathriol, the earliest name of S. Nirnaeth Arnoediad.

The root reappeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s as ᴹ√NEI̯ “tear” (Ety/NEI), though Tolkien considered and rejected alternate roots ᴹ√NEÑ (EtyAC/NEI) and ᴹ√NEI̯(ET) “moist” (NEI̯(ET)), the latter becoming the primitive word ᴹ✶neiti > ᴹQ. níte “moist, dewy” and N. nîd “damp, wet; tearful”. Other derivatives include ᴹQ. nie “tear”/N. nîn “tear” (same as the forms from the 1910s) as well as N. nírnaeth “lamentation” (Ety/NEI). Tolkien’s continued use of Q. Nienna (S/28) and S. nirnaeth (S/192) in later versions of the Silmarillion indicate this root’s ongoing validity.

Neo-Eldarin: For purposes of Neo-Eldarin, I think some of the Quenya nye- forms from the 1910s might be salvaged as abnormal vocalization from n(e)ye- < √NEY.

ar

root. day

A root in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “day” with various derivatives like ᴹQ. are, N. aur “day” and ᴹQ. arin “morning” (Ety/AR¹). In Tolkien’s later writings, the Quenya word for “day” became aurë (RC/727; S/190), and in 1957 Quenya Notes he devised a new etymology for these day-words from the root √UR “heat” as in ✶auri “heat, period of sun” (PE17/148). That opens the question whether the various 1930s Quenya “morning” words from ᴹ√AR remain valid, but many Neo-Quenya writers (including me) retain them since there aren’t really any good alternatives. They might be salvageable as derivatives of the later root √AS “warmth” (so that “day” = “hot” and “morning” = “warm”).

mit

root. small

A deleted root in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “small” with various Quenya and Noldorin derivatives of similar meaning (Ety/MIT).

thel(es)

root. sister

Tolkien gave this root in The Etymologies of the 1930s as ᴹ√THEL and extended form ᴹ√THELES with the gloss “sister” and derivatives like ᴹQ. seler and N. thêl of the same meaning, both derived from the extended root as made clear by the Noldorin plural thelei < ON. thelehi (Ety/THEL). Hints of the roots continued use appear in the 1959 term Q. meletheldi “love-sisters” for close female friends (NM/20). In notes from the late 1960s, Tolkien gave Q. nésa and S. nethel as the words for “sister”, both from the root √NETH. Nevertheless, I think it is worth retaining ᴹ√THEL(ES) to represent more abstract notions of “sisterhood” for the purposes of Neo-Eldarin, for “metaphorical sister”s as opposed to Q. nésa/S. nethel for sisters by blood.

anta-

verb. to give, present

dēr

noun. man

kabinjē antāsa

I can give it

n(d)il

root. friend; love, devotion

neth

root. young

nībe

noun. front, face

kal

root. shine

lug

root. *blue

neinē

noun. tear

neiti

adjective. moist, dewy

neñrē

noun. tear, weeping

neñwi

noun. nose

nēthē

noun. youth

span

root. white

win(i)d

root. pale blue

A rejected with roots with derivatives having to do with “blue-grey” and “fading” (Ety/WIN), perhaps replacing another rejected root ᴹ√GWINDI (EtyAC/GWINDI).

ari

noun. day

auluta-

verb. [unglossed]

bay

root. [unglossed]

danta-

verb. fall

dimbē

noun. gloom, sadness

eʒ-

verb. to be

gal

root. shine

gayas

root. fear

A root in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “fear” (Ety/GÁYAS). One of its derivatives, N. gaer “dreadful” (< ᴹ✶gaisrā), was given a new etymology in the Quendi and Eldar essay of 1959-60, where S. gaer “awful, fearful” was derived from ✶gairā (WJ/400). However, it is conceivable that √GAYAS could have survived as an extension of the later root √GAY “astound, make aghast”.

glindi

root. pale blue

A rejected root in The Etymologies of the 1930s for “pale blue” used in an abandoned explanation of N. Eredlindon as “Blue Mountains” (Ety/GLINDI; EtyAC/GLINDI). Later this name was S. Ered Lindon “Mountains of Lindon” (Ety/LIN²; S/123).

glisi

noun. honey

hō

noun. shout

ista-

verb. to know

ithil

noun. moon

iw

root. [unglossed], [ᴱ√] *fish

kalrondō

noun. hero

kaltwa

?. [unglossed]

khlip

root. [unglossed]

An unglossed root in a rejected paragraph from the Quenya Verbal System of the 1940s (PE22/112 note #78).

khōn

noun. heart

krab

root. press

A root in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “press” used as the basis for the [Noldorin] word for cram (Ety/KRAB). Later Tolkien decided this was a word in the language of the men of Dale; see Wes. cram for discussion.

kwen(ed)

root. Elf

kwenedē

noun. Elf

kōmā

noun. [unglossed]

lepet

root. finger

lin

root. pool

lis

root. honey

liñwi

noun. fish

lot(h)

root. flower

maiga

root. [unglossed]

An unglossed root appearing in the first version of Tengwesta Qenderinwa from the 1930s (TQ1) to illustrate certain patterns of root formation (PE18/66). It may have serving as the basis for ᴹQ. Maia, though this word was given different derivations later.

mitra

adjective. small

mizdā

adjective. wet

mori

adjective. black

mālō

noun. friend

nem-

verb. to seem

nethrā

adjective. young

nē̆n

noun. water

phan

root. [unglossed]

A deleted root in The Etymologies of the 1930s with no glosses or derivatives and no clear function (EtyAC/PHAN).

ranā

proper name. Moon

ringi

root. cold

sab

root. juice

This root was one of a surprisingly large number of roots Tolkien used for “juice”, appearing as ᴹ√SAB in The Etymologies of the 1930s with derivatives ᴹQ. sáva/N. saw “juice” (Ety/SAB). It might be a variant of (hypothetical) early root ✱ᴱ√WASA needed to explain the forms G. gwâs and ᴱQ. vasa “juice” in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s (GL/44). The primitive form ᴹ✶sāba also appeared in a rough 1940 note with the word N. iofog “fruit drink”, though Tolkien ultimately decided the second element was derived from ᴹ√SUK “drink” (TMME/53).

Neo-Eldarin: For purposes of Neo-Eldarin, I would assume this root refers mainly fruit juice and pulp, as opposed to syrup and tree sap which would be derived from ᴹ√PIS.

skala

noun. fish

skil

root. [unglossed]

A root mentioned in passing in as a variant of ᴹ√KIL “divide” in The Etymologies of the 1930s, but it had no derivatives and appeared nowhere else (Ety/KIL).

stin

root. [unglossed]

stā

root. [unglossed]

A deleted root reference in The Etymologies apparently serving as the basis for the verbal action suffix ᴹ✶-stā “-ing” in ᴹ✶khau̯-stā “rest-ing” (Ety/KHAW; EtyAC/KHAW). See the entry on ✶-stā for further discussion.

tekla

noun. pen

terēn(ē)

adjective. slender

tha

root. forward

torōmā

noun. [unglossed]

ungwē

noun. gloom

uruk

root. [unglossed]

A root in The Etymologies of the 1930s with no glosses or derivatives and no clear function (EtyAC/URUK).

us

root. [unglossed]

A root in The Etymologies of the 1930s with no glosses or derivatives and no clear function (EtyAC/US).

wath

root. shade

wen-

noun. girl

windı̯ā

adjective. pale blue

yel

root. friend

A new gloss for the root ᴹ√YEL “daughter”, with a new set of derivatives like ᴹQ. -iel “-friend” and ᴹQ. yelda “friendly” (Ety/YEL), but it was rejected in turn and probably replaced by ᴹ√MEL.

yē

root. to be

ñel

root. friendship

A rejected root for “friendship” in The Etymologies of the 1930s (EtyAC/ÑEL), apparently replaced by ᴹ√N(D)IL.

ē

root. to be

ī

root. to be